Night - Close Analysis
‘Night’ – Close Analysis
Elie Wiesel’s memoir ‘Night’ shows concepts of dehumanisation and savagery through the times of the Holocaust. Wiesel documents his experiences of hardship and atrocities to warn future generations of what occurred so that history doesn’t repeat itself. Through two passages we see images of the brutality that had occurred throughout the journey Elie had experienced. Although the passages are similar, they differ from each other because they’re both different experiences. In the first selected passage we see images of brutality being witnessed by a young boy whose beliefs are destroyed and there is no help, only ‘silence’. In the second selected passage the horror of the 42+ mile death march was documented which occurred later in the memoir.
In the first selected passage, Elie recaps his first night in camp at Auschwitz. He tells us about the brutality he witnessed and constantly repeats himself. Whenever a sentence is started, it begins with ‘Never shall I forget’. This suggests that the life that was being lived was so brutal and tragic that the moments will be unforgettable. The passage is in the voice of the adult author in first person future tense which is different from the rest of the book, as it’s in first person present tense. The brutality was projected through great rhetorical power in repeating ‘Never’ which was said eight times in the whole passage, which emphasises the severe impact of the experience. The last word ‘never’ becomes very dramatic as it’s a single worded sentence. This passages emphasises how Elie had to live throughout the Holocaust, as he had to travel to many camps to seek survival. It was suggested that Elie had lost his faith because there is no God. There was only the ‘silent sky’ and the ‘nocturnal silence’; there was no protection from a benevolent God. His faith had been ‘murdered and his faith was ‘consumed’ by the flames. This passage is significant as the title of the memoir was from this
Elie Wiesel’s memoir ‘Night’ shows concepts of dehumanisation and savagery through the times of the Holocaust. Wiesel documents his experiences of hardship and atrocities to warn future generations of what occurred so that history doesn’t repeat itself. Through two passages we see images of the brutality that had occurred throughout the journey Elie had experienced. Although the passages are similar, they differ from each other because they’re both different experiences. In the first selected passage we see images of brutality being witnessed by a young boy whose beliefs are destroyed and there is no help, only ‘silence’. In the second selected passage the horror of the 42+ mile death march was documented which occurred later in the memoir.
In the first selected passage, Elie recaps his first night in camp at Auschwitz. He tells us about the brutality he witnessed and constantly repeats himself. Whenever a sentence is started, it begins with ‘Never shall I forget’. This suggests that the life that was being lived was so brutal and tragic that the moments will be unforgettable. The passage is in the voice of the adult author in first person future tense which is different from the rest of the book, as it’s in first person present tense. The brutality was projected through great rhetorical power in repeating ‘Never’ which was said eight times in the whole passage, which emphasises the severe impact of the experience. The last word ‘never’ becomes very dramatic as it’s a single worded sentence. This passages emphasises how Elie had to live throughout the Holocaust, as he had to travel to many camps to seek survival. It was suggested that Elie had lost his faith because there is no God. There was only the ‘silent sky’ and the ‘nocturnal silence’; there was no protection from a benevolent God. His faith had been ‘murdered and his faith was ‘consumed’ by the flames. This passage is significant as the title of the memoir was from this